By Independent Team Museveni blamed as commission agents, government officials conspire to squeeze money out of project Deputy Registrar John Eudes Keitirima’s chambers in the High Court building in Kampala were on Sept. 6 the scene of an interesting spectacle. A construction company, Salini SpA, was seeking an order to …
Read More »Museveni, investors fight over refinery
By Haggai Matsiko Oil firms fear bankruptcy as President goes for biggest refinery in the region In October 2011, President Yoweri Museveni urged members of his ruling party to resist ferociously those “parasites who want to give away this resource (oil) for a morsel of food”. He was making a …
Read More »Tough choices over oil
By Ronald Musoke Politicians disagree over oil money as businesses face bankruptcy During a meeting on securing Uganda’s oil revenue on Sept.13 in Kampala, disagreement erupted among top politicians and national economic planners on how best to spend the expected bounty. But business people and civil society leaders had a …
Read More »Cradle-snatching politics
By Julius Odeke NRM’s Alengot exposes unpopularity of Teso old guard It is no secret that the Sept.12 Usuk County by-election that threw up an unlikely winner, 19-year old Proscovia Alengot Oromait, was a turf fight between the old guard; Soroti Municipality MP, 56-year old Mike Mukula and Amuria County …
Read More »Commercial banks must lend for economy to recover
By Julius Businge Standard Chartered Bank, Uganda’s second biggest commercial bank by assets and market share, has defended the commercial banking sector’s decision not to aggressively lower lending rates. The bank’s Regional Head of Research, Razia Khan, said in a statement sent to The Independent that although Uganda has witnessed …
Read More »KACITA calls for more interest rates easing
By Julius Businge The Kampala City Traders Association is calling for further reductions in interest rates by commercial banks to enable them access cheap credit to run business. In an interview with The Independent Everest Kayondo, the association’s chairman said commercial banks were quick at raising interest rates when the …
Read More »Uganda team inspires Obama
By Haggai Matsiko Little known base ballers give hope to U.S. president’s campaign For a bunch of Ugandan 12-year-olds—mostly from the poorest families in the sugarcane growing town of Lugazi, near Kampala, a recent trip to the U.S. was the highlight of their lives. Unknown to them, even US President …
Read More »Sex and the girls
By Sarah Namulondo An expert view on why Uganda’s HIV/AIDS has a female face If your daughter is 15 years old, there is a 14% chance that she has already had sex. In fact, if she has had sex, there is a 51% chance that she has had it this …
Read More »UPDF, Kony killing elephants for ivory ?
By Independent Team and Agencies In the first week of September the international press was awash with a single story; game rangers in Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo had spotted a Ugandan military helicopter flying very low over the park, on an alleged unauthorised flight …
Read More »New US envoy outlines priorities
By Peter Nyanzi Overwhelmed by hospitality, he gets dose of what to expect Only days after arriving as the new US ambassador to Uganda, Scott DeLisi, 59, is already showing that he is an extraordinary diplomat. Ugandans too are also showing him the challenges his government must deal with. Keen …
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